Week of 7 Easter, Year Two
[Go to Mission St Clare for an online version of the Daily Office including today’s scripture readings.]
Today’s Readings for the Daily Office:
Psalms 89:1-18 (morning) // 89:19-52 (evening)
Joshua 1:1-9
Ephesians 3:1-13
Matthew 8:5-17
While the gospels record many sayings of Jesus, today’s gospel leaves unspoken some words that were apparently very powerful. What exactly could these words have been?
The first unspoken word can somehow heal across very great distances. In the beginning of the gospel passage, a Roman military officer asks Jesus not for a bedside visit to his sick servant, but for one simple word of healing. He tells Jesus to “only speak the word, and my servant will be healed.” The military officer understands the power of one-word commands like “Come” or “Go,” and he is sure that Jesus must be able to order the universe with just one word. In response to the officer’s faith, Jesus heals his servant.
Later in the gospel, Jesus continues to heal in this simple and authoritative way. As people bring him the sick and possessed, “he cast out the spirits with a word.” I can imagine Jesus saying to one demon after the next, “Out,” “Gone,” “Leave.” And to the possessed or sick person, “Rise,” “Heal,” “Thrive.”
What one word do we need to hear from Jesus today? What one word, on the lips of Jesus, would be powerful enough to drive out what holds us back, and to draw us into life? Just say the word, Jesus. Just say the word.
Lora Walsh blogs about taking risks and seeking grace at A Daily Scandal. She serves as Priest Associate of Grace Episcopal Church in Siloam Springs and assists with adult formation and campus ministry at St. Paul’s in Fayetteville, Arkansas.